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Based on exclusive interviews with over three hundred politicians - former presidents, vice presidents, current party officials and hundreds more - this work exposes what the Pink Tide really thinks of its presidents. Arguing that the political styles of leaders such as Hugo Chávez, Rafael Correa, Álvaro Uribe and Cristina Fernández de Kirchner are far better explained in the context of their respective countries' party systems, the authors examine political stability through the paradoxical relationship between democracy and the concentration of power in charismatic individuals. This is the definitive guide to the world's most left-wing continent.

The role of the military remains a puzzle and a problem for Latin America’s democracies. Although public and scholarly attention may have wandered, the truth is that no country in the region has established full civilian control over its military institutions. And now we are witnessing the appearance of new forms of military power that make it doubtful whether the traditional understanding of civil-military relations still applies to Latin America.

In December 2019, the first cases of infection with a novel coronavirus, SARS-CoV-2, were diagnosed. Currently, there is no effective antiviral treatment for COVID-19. To address this emerging problem, we focused on the SARS-CoV-2 main protease that constitutes one of the most attractive antiviral drug targets. We have synthesized a combinatorial library of fluorogenic substrates with glutamine in the P1 position. We used it to determine the substrate preferences of the SARS-CoV and SARS-CoV-2 main proteases. On the basis of these findings, we designed and synthesized a potent SARS-CoV-2 inhibitor (Ac-Abu- d Tyr-Leu-Gln-VS, half-maximal effective concentration of 3.7 µM) and two activity-based probes, for one of which we determined the crystal structure of its complex with the SARS-CoV-2 M pro . We visualized active SARS-CoV-2 M pro in nasopharyngeal epithelial cells of patients suffering from COVID-19 infection. The results of our work provide a structural framework for the design of inhibitors as antiviral agents and/or diagnostic tests. Screening for substrate preference of the SARS-CoV and SARS-CoV-2 main protease M pro leads to the development of activity-based probes useful for structural analysis and for visualization of active M pro in infected patient epithelial cells.

Students of social-ecological systems have emphasized the need for effective cross-scale governance. We theorized that discursive barriers, particularly between technical and traditional practices, can act as a barrier to cross-scale collaboration. We analyzed the effects of discursive divides on collaboration on Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation (REDD+) policy development in Central Kalimantan, an Indonesian province on the island of Borneo selected in 2010 to pilot subnational REDD+ policy. We argue that the complexities of bridging local land management practices and technical approaches to greenhouse gas emissions reduction and carbon offsetting create barriers to cross-scale collaboration. We tested these hypotheses using an exponential random graph model of collaboration among 36 organizations active in REDD+ policy in the province. We found that discursive divides were associated with a decreased probability of collaboration between organizations and that organizations headquartered outside the province were less likely to collaborate with organizations headquartered in the province. We conclude that bridging discursive communities presents a chicken-and-egg problem for cross-scale governance of social-ecological systems. In precisely the situations where it is most important, when bridging transnational standards with local knowledge and land management practices, it is the most difficult.

Side effects of breast cancer treatment may persist long into survivorship, reducing quality of life (QOL) in patients with breast cancer and survivors. There is growing evidence for the use of digital health technologies, such as mobile apps, to support self-management, decrease symptom burden, and improve QOL in patients with cancer. However, an updated overview of the effects of mobile apps on QOL and well-being in patients with breast cancer and survivors is needed. The aim of this review was to provide an overview of breast cancer-specific, mobile app-driven lifestyle or behavioral interventions in patient care through to survivorship and their impact on QOL and mental well-being. A systematic search of PubMed, Scopus, and Web of Science was conducted to identify relevant studies. The inclusion criteria were limited to original studies involving a trial of a mobile app-driven lifestyle or behavioral intervention for patients with breast cancer or survivors and using QOL or well-being measures. The results of the studies that met the inclusion criterion were then synthesized in text and table format. The quality of the evidence was assessed with the Cochrane risk-of-bias tool. A total of 17 studies with the number of participants ranging from 23 to 356 met the inclusion criterion. Of the 17 reviewed studies, 7 (41%) delivered an app-only intervention, and 10 (59%) combined an app with additional supporting materials, such as SMS text messaging, telecoaching, wearables, or printed materials. Among the 17 reviewed studies, 6 (35%) focused on aiding patients with breast cancer during the active treatment phase (excluding ongoing hormone therapy), whereas the remaining 11 (65%) focused on survivorship. The majority of the studies (14/17, 82%) observed some positive effects on QOL or well-being measures. The results of the review indicate that mobile apps are a promising avenue for improving QOL and well-being in breast cancer care. Positive effects were observed in patients undergoing active treatment in all reviewed studies, but effects were less clear after chemotherapy and in long-term survivors. Although lifestyle and behavioral digital interventions are still being developed, and further research should still be pursued, the available data suggest that current mobile health apps aid patients with breast cancer and survivors.

Question: Will the predicted climate changes affect species distribution in the Iberian Peninsula? Location: Iberian Peninsula (Spain and Portugal). Methods: We modelled current and future tree distributions as a function of climate, using a computational framework that made use of one machine learning technique, the random forest (RF) algorithm. This algorithm provided good predictions of the current distribution of each species, as shown by the area under the corresponding receiver operating characteristics (ROC) curves. Species turnover, richness and the change in distributions over time to 2080 under four Intergovernmental panel on climate change (IPCC) scenarios were calculated using the species map outputs. Results and Conclusions: The results show a notable reduction in the potential distribution of the studied species under all the IPCC scenarios, particularly so for mountain conifer species such as Pinus sylvestris, P. uncinata and Abies alba. Temperate species, especially Fagus sylvatica and Quercus petraea, were also predicted to suffer a reduction in their range; also submediterranean species, especially Q. pyrenaica, were predicted to undergo notable decline. In contrast, typically Mediterranean species appeared to be generally more capable of migration, and are therefore likely to be less affected. Nomenclature: Amaral Franco (1990), Govaerts & Avishai (2002) for Quercus pubescens.

Curcuma root (Curcuma longa L.) is a very important plant in gastronomy and medicine for its unique antiseptic, anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial and antioxidant properties. Conventional methods for the extraction of curcuma oil require long extraction times and high temperatures that can degrade the active substances. Therefore, the objectives of the present study were: (i) first, to optimize the extraction yield of curcuma oil by applying a Box-Behnken experimental design using surface response methodology to the microwave-assisted extraction (MAE) technique (the independent variables studied were reaction time (10–30 min), microwave power (150–200 W) and curcuma powder/ethanol ratio (1:5–1:20; w/v); and, (ii) second, to assess the total phenolic content (TPC) and their antioxidant activity of the oil (at the optimum conditions point) and compare with the conventional Soxhlet technique. The optimum conditions for the MAE were found to be 29.99 min, 160 W and 1:20 w/v to obtain an optimum yield of 10.32%. Interestingly, the oil extracted by microwave-assisted extraction showed higher TPC and better antioxidant properties than the oil extracted with conventional Soxhlet technique. Thus, it was demonstrated that the method applied for extraction influences the final properties of the extracted Curcuma longa L. oil.

Archivo histórico de Kipus: Revista Andina de Letras y Estudios Culturales, 2003.